Book of the Month March - A Culinary Experience of St. Patrick's Day

Under the heading "Book of the Month", we present one of the approximately 12,000 books in the Adalbert Raps Spice Library every month. In 2022, the selection will be made to match the respective months, and everything from specialist books to old memorabilia to curiosities will be on offer - so it's worth taking a look!

The Adalbert Raps Spice Library also stocks exciting works on international culinary arts - such as the predestined for March "Irisch kochen: Dishes and their History" by Jürgen Schneider, because St. Patrick's Day always takes place in Ireland on 17 March. Our book of the month is also dressed in the colour that suits the holiday: the world-famous green, which is supposed to be reminiscent of a shamrock.

The book begins with an introduction to Irish cuisine and the most important foods. The book also delves deeply into history, mostly taking up traditions as far back as the 7th century - and in some cases even beyond, up to our own era! Thus it can be learned that "cattle rustling" is one of the best-documented traditions of the 7th to 17th centuries. The historical part is structured according to the raw materials, from the aforementioned cattle to vegetables and herbs to the potato or even spirits.

The second part of the book contains recipes for the categories that have been historically studied in advance, and not in short supply! For example, there are nine different bread recipes for the category "Cereals and Bread". However, there are also some different categories, which only make it easier to handle, such as starters and snacks or desserts and sweets.

In any case, an exciting read for all those interested - and who wouldn't want to know what the "cattle rustling" is all about? (Tip: You will find it on page 25...)

Book: Irish cooking: Dishes and their History | Jürgen Schneider | 1999 | Verlag die Werkstatt, Göttingen | ISBN: 3-89533-249-6